The man who has the pleasure/challenge of coaching LeBron James has a Fall River connection, via Durfee High School basketball history.

David Blatt is the new head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Long before he got into coaching, and even before he played basketball at Princeton, Blatt for a short time was a key figure on the Hilltopper hoops scene.

Do you remember?

The year was 1977. En route to a 26-0 state championship season, the Hilltoppers faced mighty Framingham South in the Division 1 South final.

Framingham South, considered by some the favorite to win it all that year, featured some very good players, including Brady Otey and 6-foot-10 Tommy Barrett. But their best player was 6-foot-2 guard David Blatt.

Against Durfee in the showdown on March 12, 1977, Blatt scored 14 points before fouling out with 4:02 remaining. Ahead at the time, Durfee prevailed 64-58. Kevin Whiting led Durfee with 26 points.

In his Herald News game story, Pete Levesque described Framingham South as the “team widely recognized as the best in the state” and noted that in the South final, Blatt “couldn’t penetrate Durfee’s combination zone defense.”

Wonder if that’s how Mr. Blatt remembers it.

That was also back in the days when Durfee basketball suffered from Rodney Dangerfield syndrome concerning coverage from the Boston newspapers. In a the Levesque story, Durfee coach Skip Karam was quoted as saying, “I hope today’s performance has convinced Boston writers that there’s talent in the Bristol County area.”

(A lack of respect in and around Boston and getting cheated by those Cape Cod referees were for a long time two of the familiar cries from Durfee fans. Miss those days.)

Durfee Principal Paul Marshall, a 1977 graduate of Framingham South, said Blatt's ascension to such a high-profile job should be no surprise to those who knew him.

“He was in my class. Let me correct that. I was in his class,” Marshall said. “He was president of our class. He was an outstanding, phenomenal, tremendous guy. I couldn’t think of a better guy.”

Blatt, Marshall said, had the ability to bring a diverse student population together. “He was a natural leader, but he was also an unassuming guy. Very intelligent.”

----- Can’t help but share few interesting items from the March 14, 1977 Herald News I dusted off to check on the Framingham South game. The ads are the best. Sawyers had European inspired vested suits for $89. Rippoffs over in Somerset was selling poplin casual slacks for $7.98. A story in one of the news sections told of Boston Symphony Orchestra conductor Seiji Ozawa and Boston Pops conductor Arthur Fielder speaking to political leaders about their opposition to Gov. Dukakis’ plans to possibly renovate an abandoned Jesuit seminary in Lenox into a medium security jail. The seminary was near Tanglewood, the summer home of the BSO.

Page 2 of 2 - ----- This is called a transition.

Concerning Tanglewood, 2014, I doubt my group of nine was the only one to leave last Saturday night’s John Williams Movie Night concert disappointed. Ol’ John simply didn’t have the orchestra crank out anywhere near enough of his most popular and familiar movie tunes. And he talked too much. I’m waiting to hear the classic Indiana Jones theme (which never came) and he’s yapping about Fred Astaire.

But no big deal, John. It’s not like we drove 287 miles round trip for the concert. Oh, that’s right, we did.

----- On a slightly less disappointed vein …

It would have been nice if Bret “Hit Man” Hart had at least smacked someone during his visit to the PAL Hall for the TRP card last Friday. Of course Hart wasn’t going to engage in a formal match but why not send some wise mouth to the ring while Hart was addressing the fans and have Hit Man belt him and toss him from the ring?

Forgot to ask Hart if Hitman/Hit Man is properly one word or two. You see it both ways. It was two words on the WWE site, so that’s what I’ve been using.

----- An interesting wrestling note. Ted Bolduc, one of Steve Ricard’s lieutenants at Top Rope Promotions, is also an accomplished wrestler. He told me he recently wrestled the son of Scott Hall (Razor Ramon). It was, of course, three years ago that Hall showed up very impaired for a TRP card at PAL, with video clips of his “performance” getting tons of hits and the appearance leading to an ESPN documentary on Hall. Bolduc said young Cody Taylor Hall is nowhere near an accomplished wrestler and that he tried to rough Bolduc up a bit in their match.

----- Another somewhat interesting wrestling note. The other day, a group of guys were getting a little rowdy on Taunton Green. One of them told police they were just horsing around, giving each other “Ric Flair chops.”

Woooo!

----- One of my favorite annual moments in Greater Fall River sports: When local Little League czar (and a kind czar he is) Jeff Silvia hauls out the Russ Gibson Trophy which goes to the winner of the City Championship tourney.

----- Togo Palazzi.

If bored email Greg Sullivan at gsullivan@heraldnews.com. In Twitter Village he’s @GregSullivanHN.